Google to buy part of smartphone maker HTC for $1.1 billion

Taipei : Taiwan's struggling smartphone maker HTC said Thursday it was selling part of its smartphone business to US technology giant Google for $1.1 billion.

The deal includes intellectual property licensing and half of its research staff, or around 2,000 people, and is expected to be completed in early 2018 pending regulatory approval, HTC said.

"For Google, the deal will further strengthen its investment in and committment to smartphones and its hardware business... it shows that Google sees Taiwan as a key hub for innovative technology," HTC spokesman Peter Shen told a press conference in Taipei.

He declined to give further details about the deal but stressed that HTC would continue to develop and sell smartphones under its own brand.